Is practice culture your biggest career risk—or your superpower? Are “lazy new grads” a myth masking broken systems?

Host Dr. Dani Rabwin is joined by Dr. G (Gershon Alaluf) for a candid, high-energy conversation on building psychologically safe teams, real mentorship, and simple habits that make clinics fun, resilient, and effective for early-career veterinarians.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why culture is the practice: daily behaviors beat policies every time
• Psychological safety: how to create space to speak up, debrief, and learn fast
• The fear → worry loop: stopping post-op rumination with structured debriefs
• Money clarity: production, basic P&L, and fair compensation conversations
• Mentorship that works: modeling mistakes, role clarity, and paid trainer roles
• Corporate vs. private: incentives, signing-bonus traps, and fit checks
• Soft skills that cost $0: communication, feedback, and “make it fun” rituals
• GP-led CE + realistic job previews: preparing grads for real-world medicine

Who this is for

• Early-career veterinarians and interns
• Veterinary students and VBMA leaders
• Practice owners, medical directors, and managers
• Corporate/regional leaders shaping new-grad programs
• RVTs/tech leads building training tracks

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro — why culture determines your landing as a new grad

03:12 “Culture is the practice”: behaviors, not binders

07:38 Money matters: production, P&L, and transparent goals

12:04 Psychological safety: speaking up without getting burned

16:41 Fear vs. worry: debriefs that prevent 2 a.m. spirals

21:05 Mentorship that sticks: modeling mistakes & paid trainer roles

26:22 Corporate vs. private: incentives, fit, signing-bonus cautions

31:48 The “lazy new grad” myth: expectations, reps, confidence

36:30 Phone-a-specialist: consult culture and referral relationships

41:07 Leadership styles: servant & transformational in the clinic

45:20 Action playbook: day-one moves to lift culture (anyone can do)

Resources mentioned

• Culture & debrief checklists (psychological safety prompts)
• New-grad mentorship outline (skills, soft skills, debrief cadence)
• GP-led CE initiatives + realistic job preview resources

Ready Vet Go — because mentorship matters, and vets shouldn’t have to go it alone.

Follow: @readyvetgo_

Contact: info@pacificlensstudios.com

#practiceculture #mentorship #psychologicalsafety #vetmed #ReadyVetGo

In this energizing and real episode of ReadyVetGo, Dr. Dani Rabwin sits down with Dr. Jake Rastas—a new grad veterinarian, rotating intern at the University of Georgia, and ultra marathon runner—for a conversation about mentorship, confidence, and mental resilience in early-career veterinary medicine.

From Division I football to vet school to internship life, Jake shares how mentors shaped his path, how to stay competitive without becoming toxic, and why you don’t need confidence before doing something hard—confidence often comes after you do it. If you’re a vet student, new grad, or intern trying to build your skills while managing pressure, this one will hit home.

📌 What You’ll Learn:

• Mentorship that actually changes your career (and the “pay it forward” culture of vet med)
• How to build confidence after the hard thing—not before
• Ultra marathon mindset: “This is what hard feels like”
• Healthy competition without rooting for others to fail
• Time management during internship + intense training schedules
• Learning procedures for the first time: readiness, reality, and resources

🎬 Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro: Dani + Jake (new grad, UGA rotating intern, ultra runner)

01:30 – Jake’s path: D1 football → vet school → internship

04:10 – Mentors who changed everything (and why “pay it forward” matters)

07:05 – Competitive drive without becoming toxic

10:20 – “This is what hard feels like”: ultra running as mental training

13:40 – Confidence isn’t the prerequisite—action is

16:05 – Internship time management + training while exhausted

19:10 – First-time procedures: resources, prep, and staying safe

22:30 – Handling pressure, feedback, and the learning curve

25:40 – What Jake wants new grads to hear right now

👇 QUESTION FOR YOU: What’s one hard thing you’re leaning into right now in vet school, internship, or practice?

Season 1 Ep18

✅ If this helped, like, subscribe, and share with a vet student or new grad who needs it today.

🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

📲 Follow: @readyvetgo_

📧 Contact: info@pacificlensstudios.com

#ReadyVetGo #VeterinaryMedicine #VetMentorship #NewGradVet #VetInternship #VetStudent #UltraMarathonRunner #Confidence #MentalResilience

In this inspiring and practical episode of ReadyVetGo, Dr. Dani Rabwin sits down with Noah Gershoni (he/him), a final-year veterinary student at the University of Arizona, to talk mentorship, networking with authenticity, and how to get the most out of clinical rotations—especially in a distributive model program.

Noah shares his non-traditional path to vet school (community college prereqs, years working in ER), how meaningful connections opened doors like Venom Week, and why collaboration beats competition in veterinary medicine. They also dig into the realities of rotating through different clinics and states, the hidden challenge of housing logistics, and how to learn from every mentor and team—without coming off combative.

📌 What You’ll Learn:

• How to network without being transactional (and actually maintain connections)
• Community college to vet school: confidence, resilience, and belonging
• Why UA’s culture (no grades + group-based learning) builds collaboration
• Distributive clinical year: real-world medicine, pros/cons, and logistics
• Why general practice can do more than people think (and why it matters for access)
• Mentorship on short rotations: how to ask questions well and respect time
• Two must-use rotation tips: “keep the technicians happy” + find value in everything

🎬 Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro + pronouns: Noah (he/him) + Dani (she/her)

01:44 – How they met: conference lunch line + service dog networking

03:00 – ReadyVetGo networking night: “bring as many as you can” (20 students show up)

04:39 – Networking that isn’t transactional: curiosity, real connection, follow-through

06:35 – Non-traditional path: community college prereqs (no “traditional college” route)

09:33 – Working in ER for 5 years: learning fast, growing responsibility

10:42 – Falling for surgery: mixed animal + OR confidence

11:35 – Why University of Arizona: Venom Week + meeting faculty through networking

13:41 – Personal statement: vulnerability, first-gen story, resilience, family pride

16:43 – UA culture: no GPAs/grades + group-based learning = collaboration over competition

21:29 – Clinical year (distributive model): rotating clinics/states + real-world medicine

22:18 – The tough part: housing/logistics + advocating for classmates

25:23 – General practice “can do it”: accessibility, internal medicine in GP, specialization trend

28:15 – Mentorship nuance: asking questions vs respecting time (the “dance”)

30:07 – Evidence-based vs “old school”: how to ask “why” without being combative

32:53 – Tip #1: keep technicians happy (donuts + teach-back + teamwork)

34:23 – Tip #2: find value in everything (even “how not to do it”) + don’t take it personally

👇 QUESTION FOR YOU: What’s one mentoring tip you wish you learned earlier in vet school or practice?

Season 1 Ep 18

✅ If this helped, like, subscribe, and share with a vet student or new grad who needs it today.

🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.

📲 Follow: @readyvetgo_

📧 Contact: info@pacificlensstudios.com

#ReadyVetGo #VeterinaryMedicine #VetMentorship #VetStudent #ClinicalRotations #Networking #NewGradVet #GeneralPractice #VetSchool #DistributiveModel